Tag: slider

1

It has never been easier to discover new places.

Thanks to the explosion of the internet and social media, it has never been easier to experience adventures that were previously only discovered by word of mouth. The internet is flooded with accounts of personal discoveries made by travelers just waiting for you to follow in their footsteps. While researching where to go for the pilot episode of Chasing the World, we knew that we needed to find a real adventure. We had heard that all the jungle treks in Thailand highlighted in the Lonely Planet books were safe, comfortable and tourist friendly. LAME. So after digging deep into google, we stumbled on a message board where a lone man in the depths of the internet recounted his adventure in North Sumatra, Indonesia with a jungle guide named Obiwan. One month later, we found ourselves stumbling out of a sketchy van in the middle of the Sumatran jungle at midnight, and… well, by now you know the rest.

We all had a panic attack while following Obiwan through the jungle at midnight…

New, epic adventures that are truly off the beaten track have never been so accessible. You just have to know what type of experience you’re looking for— and a mysterious man on the dark side of the internet is waiting to help you along the way.

Disclaimer: Please don’t get kidnapped.

2

The world will never be the same as it is right now.

While the information available due to social media is great, it does have its downsides. One of the greatest joys of traveling is the freedom to spontaneously meet locals and discover secret destinations. The world is changing at an ever-increasing rate, and these secrets are becoming public knowledge.

Some countries such as Myanmar/Burma have just recently opened the door to travelers, and are in the process of going through a lot of changes as they transition to accommodate tourists. When I traveled to Bagan, we befriended a local who took us to a hidden pagoda with an underground system of tunnels. While descending into the depths of the ancient pyramid with no other tourists in sight, I was hit with the realization that this was one of the craziest moments I would ever experience in my life. In 2 years from now, I won’t be surprised if that same temple develops a $20 price tag and becomes packed to the brink with camera-crazed tourists who have just stumbled out of their tour bus.

We explored the Inthein Temple near Inle Lake in Myanmar, and we were the only ones there.

The world is still full of plenty of secret adventures—you just have to discover them before everyone else does, and that might not be so easy in the future. After all, once a travel secret becomes public knowledge and the tourists arrive, it becomes less of an experience and more of an attraction.

3

Once you start traveling, the rest of your life will be an adventure.

Seriously, once you make the initial leap into a life of travel, it will free you in ways you never even knew were possible. When living in your home country, you are bound by a certain set of expectations and rules, and this is especially true for the millennial generation. In my case, my life had been relatively structured by society since birth, and now that I had graduated from college, the next logical step was to secure a job and begin my career like everyone else. But, instead I bought a one-way flight to Australia with $3,000 in my bank account, my friends and no plans.

When you embark on a flight to the other side of the world, all your preconceived ideas, biases and societal pressures go out the window. You are free to try new things, work odd jobs and do whatever your intuition wills. It’s liberating.

Arielle had to climb to the top of this cliff to show the world how liberated she’s become.

We worked a series of odd jobs in Australia such as Greenpeace canvassers, filling cereal boxes for Kelloggs, assistants in hospitals and temps in random technology companies. Each new job didn’t necessarily look good on our resumes, but we gained life experience that we would have never experienced back home. In my free time, I purchased and learned how to ride a motorcycle, became and advanced scuba diver, tried skydiving and consistently/spontaneously bought plane tickets to various destinations around Australia. Our experience culminated in our decision to purchase a whirlwind ticket to the North Sumatran jungle to film our travel-based reality show pilot.

For the rest of my life, I seriously doubt that I will ever lose the adventurous spirit that has been instilled in me since beginning this journey. Even when I do move home, I’ll continue to push the boundaries of my comfort zone.

I understand that traveling is not a realistic option for everyone. Commitments such as family, relationships and career often get in the way. However, if there is even a remote possibility that you can make it happen, go for it. Life is an adventure. Don’t let it be anything less.